Heat exchangers - Operating problems

The main operating problems encountered by heat exchanger users relate to fouling, corrosion, vibration and mechanical strength.

Fouling and corrosion are still the least understood phenomena in the industry:

• oversizing of equipment in design offices;

• additional energy expenditure;

• replacement of corroded equipment ;

• plant shutdown costs for dismantling and cleaning.

Vibration phenomena must also be taken into account when sizing heat exchangers, in the same way as heat transfer or pressure drop. A methodology for assessing fluid-induced vibration is described in this article.

Finally, for the most classic geometries, mechanical strength issues are covered by various regulatory texts, briefly described at the end of the article, as well as by a European standardization system for testing that has been in place since the 2000s.

The Heat Exchangers package is the subject of several articles:

• [BE 9 515] Definition and general principles ;

• [BE 9 516] Description ;

• [BE 9 517] Heat exchanger sizing ;

• [BE 9 518] Intensification of heat exchange ;

• [BE 9 519] Operating problems and regulatory aspects ;